A mobile payments and remittances startup called TerraPay may have achieved what could turn out to be a huge industry milestone in the remittances space in Africa. The startup announced today that it has secured a license from the Reserve Bank of South Africa to conduct low-value international money transfers in the country.

It’s a big deal because TerraPay is not a regular remittances company in the mold of the players in the market today (Western Union, WorldRemit, Cassava Remit, Mukuru, Mama Money, Hello Paisa and others). TerraPay doesn’t seek to compete with these remittances companies – it seeks to enable them.

TerraPay describes itself as “the world’s first mobile payments switch”, connecting mobile wallet systems, MNOs, regular banks, card issuers, and governments. As a payments integrator, it secures the licensing, cash-in and cash-out agents on the ground, the technology, the forex conversions, the Anti Money Laundering and other compliance stuff, and the establishment of corridors.